This invention relates to apparatus for separating gas from liquids.
There are many instances where it is desired to separate gas from liquids. For example, a processing gas may be dissolved in a liquid, or a body of liquid may include entrained gas bubbles or have a surface froth of gas bubbles. In the oil and gas well drilling industry, for example, gas often becomes entrapped in drilling mud. Gas/liquid separators are commonly used to separate the gas from the liquid. Three-phase separators also are commonly used to separate gas, oil, and water, for example.
It is often desirable to rotate the liquid in a centrifugal gas/liquid separator so that the centrifugal acceleration produces a greater separating force between the liquid and the gas. It is also desirable that the centrifugal acceleration force the liquid out of the degassing chamber to atmospheric pressure without using a pump. In this instance, where the separated liquid is being forced out of the degassing chamber to atmospheric pressure, and the degassing chamber operates at a gas pressure below atmospheric pressure, it is necessary to prevent separated gas from accompanying the liquid forced out of the degassing chamber in order to maximize gas/liquid separator efficiency.